Outlining SPAWAR's role as the Navy's cyber systems command, the strategic plan aligns closely with the chief of naval operations' (CNO) revised "Cooperative Strategy for the 21st Century," an imperative to strengthening naval sea power and global information warfare systems, creating a "top-down" effort in which everybody contributes.

"This strategic plan reflects the input and effort of a lot of people across our SPAWAR team," said Lewis during an all-hands meeting with the workforce. "Now the hard work begins. By building on our accomplishments from last year, we will continue pressing forward by providing milestones, measures of performance and measures of effectiveness for each strategic objective along the way."

The 2016 plan incorporates tactics that address the Navy's evolving cyber threats, while positioning and strengthening the organization's role as the IT technical authority. In order to achieve his vision and continue to stay at the forefront, Lewis stressed the need to accelerate and streamline delivery of new capability and advanced technology to the fleet. Also a key tenet outlined in the CNO strategy, speeding up delivery of innovation will enable the U.S. to maintain technological superiority and maximize warfighter advantage. By facilitating the delivery of advanced modern IT and cyber capabilities, SPAWAR will play an integral part in transforming what it means to operate and maneuver within the cyber domain.

"As the cyber environment evolves, priorities shift as well as objectives," he said. "We must be prepared to adjust to these changes and remain fluid. A robust and transparent execution management strategy is critical for that success."

Lewis said success will require developing cyber technical leadership across the Navy in all domains; reducing the cost of operations to ensure delivery of affordable warfighting solutions; and optimizing the organization and workforce to bring about change.

In delivering these capabilities, fiscal realities will always challenge the organization to remain lean and focused, but the organization must continue to provide the absolute best value to the warfighter for each taxpayer dollar spent, said Lewis.

Five objectives form the basis of the SPAWAR 2016 Strategic Plan, including accelerating and streamlining delivery of new capability and advanced technology to the fleet to maintain U.S. technological superiority and to maximize warfighter advantage; enabling the delivery of advanced modern IT and cyber capabilities and transforming what it means to operate and maneuver within the cyber domain; providing the cyber technical leadership required across the Navy; reducing the cost of operations to ensure delivery of affordable warfighting solutions; and optimizing the organization and workforce to bring about change.

"Read through our plan, including the milestones and measures, and you will be able to see connections to each and every person across the organization," said Lewis. "Let me assure you, those connections are critical to our success and the Navy's. We may think of the program office when a satellite is launched into space or when a new network is installed on a ship, but it takes everyone in the organization working together to accomplish these objectives, and it will take all of SPAWAR working together to achieve this vision."

As the Navy's Information Warfare systems command, SPAWAR designs, develops and deploys advanced cyber communications and information capabilities. With more than 9,600 active duty military and civil service professionals located around the world and close to the fleet, SPAWAR is at the forefront of research, engineering, acquisition and support services that provide vital decision superiority to our forces from seabed to space.To read the SPAWAR 2016 Strategic Plan, visit www.public.navy.mil/spawar/Press/Documents/Publications/Strategy.pdfhttp://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/news/2016/01/mil-160127-nns01.htm?_m=3n.002a.1625.qx0ao0791x.1hqs